The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1887-04-27
STAGE GOSSIP.
THE wIND-UP OF THE REGULAR
SEASON IN NEW YORK.

NEW YORK, April 22.-The dramatic
surprise has been the hit of 1.-THE Golden
Giant at the Fifth-avenue Theatre.
Nobody had expected it. Mckee Rankin
and his wife, who play the star roles, are
quite as much astonished as anybody
else, dare say, because when they
made the same piece known in San Fran
cisco about year ago the critics APP
plauded it but feebly, and the public
patronized it only week. Its New
York success came about quickly and
oddly. Stetson, of the Fifth-avenue,
had made up his mind to get rid of the
D'Oyly Carte "Ruddygorep Company in
a hurry; indeed, he closed their engage
ment so suddenly that his haste well
nigh recoiled upon himself, for one day
he awoke to the startling conclusion that
unless he forthwith and in short order
arranged for an attraction to succeed the
singers his house would have to shut its
doors for time. think he ran across
Charles Frohman just at this critical
period. Frohman is one of the trio of
Frohman Brothers, all of whom are
shrewd theatrical men and at least one
of whom-Daniel-is possessed of con-
siderable ability. Charles Frohman is
very active partner of w. W.
Randall in the dramatic booking
firm of Frohman & Randall. 1t SO hap
pened that Rankin had been booked by
them for number of Eastern theatres
not gilt-edged houses, by the way, for
Rankin had been in poor luck, and, hay
ing even made brief transit of the big
museums in the West, smart Eastern
managers were fighting shy of him.
Stetson, however, was urged by Froh-
man to give Rankin the open time at the
Fifth-avenue, and, without knowing any
thing of the play-probably relying
wholly upon his personal liking for
the actors-the Fifth-avenue's manager
agreed to let THE Golden Giant" occupy
his house. But before the opening night
arrived he weakened to the extent of
limiting the engagement to two weeks,
fearing a failure; and he was this time
farsighted enough to engage Mrs. Lang
try TO follow, In LADY Clancarty."
Well, 'eThe Golden Giant" came, and
was seen and conquered. / saw a SPLEEN
did audience at the first night; profess
sional friends of the Rankins were there
in almost equal number with their public
admirers; and from both plaudits came
! in no niggard measure. When say the
play was early and easily recognized as a
! tumble of half a-dozen dramas of 40
days, and add that only three charact Is
in itwere sketched with any approach to
clearness, you win begin to appreciate
the significance of the Rankins' hit I; and
In that hit Mrs. Rankin shared first and
| foremost.
Looking at Mrs Rankin as she recited
the thrilling description of Bessies fish
ing, marveled that she had so success
fully retained her early sprightliness
AS nearly as / can fix it, she came into
the world about 1847, and she must
have been mere child when, as Kittie
Blanchard, she started on her stage
career by dancing in the ballet at a Phila-
| delphia concert saloon. Nor was it until
late in $50 that she began to give apron
ise of the artistic excelleney that has
since made her one of our most popular
soubrettes. In December of that year the
chance came to her to play chambermaid
roles at Woods Theatre. Louisville, Ky,
and she improved it wonderfully we'll
Just about six years later she married
4 Rankin, who, the son of an old show
man, had been since 81 carving his way
/ into the ranks of good actors, under the
nom de theatre of George Henley. The
Rankins have been in harmony ever
since, and their stage world has profited
by their domestic felicity. We are all
| glad in this city that, after their misfer-
tunes of the past three years, they have
come back to the metropolis to get a
| warm welcome and asubstantial recogni-
ton.
Strange, isn't it, that when they left
here, in 1884, they went away virtually
bankrupted by the failure of their Third
avenue Theatre enterprises Now thai
Rankin has seemingly regained his old
grip, am told by his manager that he
means not to let go. He will try his
s'Allan Dare" by and by at the Four
teenth-street, and in the early fall his
spectacular Macbeth" will be acted at
Niblo's, with the music written especially
for it by 'Frisco's rising musical genius,
Edgar s. Kelly. When Rankin put on
macbeth" in San Francisco during his
managerial experiment there, last year,
he succeeded in running it twenty-five
nights, a splendid record, and one not sur
| passed in this country, when Forests
Park Theatre twenty-night revival, in
1S43, hitherto bore the palm. Altogether,
il looks like sunshine for the Rankins
from now out
Our dramatic season is closing quietly
Ned Harrigan has just revived "Corde-
HAS Aspirations" with Dan Collyer in
Tony Harris old role of "Rebecca," and
/ it will easily wind-up the season at this
house, April 80. DAILY has concluded to
keep 1.-THE Tanning of the Shrew" on to
the end of his New York season, and
/ Wallack's and the Madison-square will
also close the same time. Wallack has
been obliged to resort to his list of old
comedies TO help him out, for the bottom
fell out of the business of "The Domi-
MES Daughter" and there was nothing
else to do. As / mail you this letter
bear rumor on the Rialto to the effect
| that ii. E. Abbey has made overtures to
take an interest in Wallack's, and that
Moss and "The Guv'nor" are earnestly
considering the big managers proposal.
OF course, everybody in the city comedies
that fresh energy and little pluck, such
as Abbey has, are exactly what Wal
lack needs.
big Pony's" failure at the Bijou has
considerably annoyed young e. T. Oar
ling, who wrote the music; but "Nym
Crinkle," who turned out the book, is en-
tirely imperturbable, and it is said he
hasn't even sat the melange through Nat
Goodwin's desire to figure in every scene
and to say all the witty things hurt the
opera greatly. On May Dixey will
come back to play "Adonis' for three
weeks, at the end of which time he will
close his season and rest--for the first
time, if you'll believe it, in nearly three
i yearsl
We will have fewer summer seasons at
4 the theatres than was the case last year.
/ 'Erminie" will be retained through the
warm weather at the Casino; one of
McCaulls opera troupes will occupy Wal
lacks as usual, and the Duff Opera Com
pany will try to hang out at length at the
| Standard. These will be the only sum
mer engagements of note, unless 1t shall
happen that 1.-THE Pyramid" new opera
by Charles Puerner, an American, shall
make hit at the Star next month, In